Golden Together
by midnightstealth
Summary: Eiji finds a note when he comes home from practice one day. How will change his life? How will it change his relationships? What can Oishi do to help? Will this make Eiji strong or utterly destroy him.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi there so this is my first prince of tennis fic. I do not own PoT Hope you enjoy.**

"So you are certain about this?" Mr. Kikumaru asked looking at his eldest son.

"Yes I am absolutely certain that Eiji is a couple with that Oishi boy," Aya said.

"Then he leaves us no choice, he is no longer worthy of this family," Mr. Kikumaru said. His son wasn't straight and that wasn't acceptable. He didn't want a kid that couldn't even behave right. He did that acrobatic tennis or whatever it was and had shown what he could do on national TV. That was enough and now this. Mr. Kikumaru picked up the phone and dialed the landlord's number and cancelled the rent.

"Suko, leave a note for your brother," Mrs. Kikumaru said. Her eldest daughter ran off to write the note and came back when she had finished.

"No that is too nice Suko. Here let me have it," Mr. Kikumaru said taking the paper. On it he scribbled a note and with that the family left with the belongings they had not had the moving company take.

Eiji was walking home from practice and feeling good about things. He had finally managed to win one game against Tezuka and even though Tezuka had taken the match it had been a small victory none the less. Eiji was excited to go home and tell his family. They would be proud that he was moving up in the school ranks. He smiled and hummed a little tune as he walked through the streets watching the sun set in the sky. He turned and came to his house and went and opened the front door.

"hey everyone I'm…."he blinked once, twice, and then a third time. Surely he must be dreaming. His house was dark and there was no furniture in the house. Eiji rushed out the door and looked at the number on the house. It was his house. He ran back inside and checked to make sure he wasn't dreaming. He realized that he wasn't. The house was still the same as when he had still entered it. That's when he saw it, a small piece of paper laying on the floor. Eiji rushed over and picked it up hoping that it contained some information as to where his family was. 'Where are they? Are they hurt? Did someone kidnap my whole family? What's going on, where can I find them?' Eiji though a million questions running through his head. He lifted the piece of paper up off the floor and read it in the dimming light. His eyes got wider with each word. The note read:

_We have found out about you and Oishi. You are no longer a welcome part of this family. We have left and let our landlord know that we have cancelled the_ _rent. You have to be out by 6PM and no later. If you try to come after us you will regret it._

Eiji sank to the floor sobbing. His family wasn't in any trouble. They were perfectly fine. Apparently it was him. He was the screw up. They had abandoned him. 'It's all my fault. I shouldn't have been so open in public with Oishi. Why the hell would they do this though? Why wouldn't they talk to me about it first? How come everyone felt the same? Why the hell did they all abandon me? I don't deserve this! I don't deserve and of this,' Eiji though as he sat on the floor. Then his eyes got wide as something occurred to him. 'What if Oishi's parents kicked him out too?! It would be all my fault that I was too open and then Oishi would be suffering because of me and he would abandon me too. I wouldn't blame him though. I am the one at fault here. I ruined everyone. I put everyone to shame.' Just then eiji heard a knock at the door. He ran to get it and found himself face to face with their landlord.

"Eiji what are you still doing here? It's six o clock and you guys are supposed to be out of here by now," the landlord said looking confused. He hoped that everything was alright and that nothing bad had happened to the baby of the family.

"Oh no don't worry I know. I just forgot one of my schoolbooks and had to run back and get it. I'll see you around," Eiji said running out the door of his house before anything else could be said. He didn't stop running until he was about two blocks from his house. Eiji slowed down and that is when the fear started to set in. it was getting dark and he had no place to go. Sure he could go to Oishi's, but if Oishi's parents found out then Oishi might get kicked out too. Eiji wanted to make sure his boyfriend was safe. He couldn't risk anything. Eiji thought for a minute. He wasn't the most street smart person, but he needed to find somewhere to sleep because it was getting late. Then he found it. It was dark which would be good for protection from any prying eyes.

"I suppose it's better than nothing, nya," Eiji thought walking over to the steps of the music shop. He found himself in another pickle. He had no blanket and no pillow. He sighed and set his things down on the step above his head. Then he took off his regulars jacket and wadded it up on top of his backpack. Putting his tennis bag in front of his legs to keep the wind off them he set his head down on the "pillow."

"I guess this is the best I can do for now. Goodnight world," Eiji said as he closed his eyes. As he drifted off to sleep he thought about his family and how much he hated them. He also thought about Oishi hoping to god that his boyfriend was not in the same position that he was in now.

**A/N: What did you think?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: SO here is chapter two. Find out more about what happens to Eiji. I do not own Prince of Tennis although sometimes I wish I did. **

Eiji woke up on his step and checked his watch. His eyes widened when he realized he only had an hour before school started. He would need to be there a half hour early so he could get a shower in the locker room before class started. He knew that he would have to take a bus, but frowned as he realized he didn't have any money. He decided he better look to see what he had in the duffle that the note had been laying on top of. He found some clothes, his toothbrush and toothpaste, and tucked in one pocket he found ¥15,000. He smiled to himself and took the money out. He peeled off one of the bills and ran towards the bus stop carrying his things. He was going to make it to school after all and it looked like he would have enough money to get a few meals. He hopped aboard the bus and paid his fare. He rode until he was about a block from school and rang for the bus to stop. He got off, thanking the driver, and rushed off to the locker rooms where he got into the shower and rinsed off before changing back into his uniform. He then dug in his bag again and got out his toothbrush and toothpaste. He brushed his teeth quickly before heading off. He managed to stash his duffle in his tennis cubby along with his racket before he went to class. He made it to class just as the bell was ringing. He plopped down in his seat next to Fuji and opened his book. The day seemed to go pretty fast and before he knew it Eiji was heading down to tennis practice. Then he remembered what was there: that duffle bag. He spent most of his time walking down to the courts trying to figure out a good excuse for the reason he had a duffle bag. He couldn't come up with one and hoped that no one asked about it. To his luck they didn't and soon everyone was out on the tennis courts.

"Eiji you will be playing me," Tezuka said looking at the other third year.

'Just my luck that I have to play captain today,' Eiji thought. He was glad that he didn't have to face Oishi though. They were too in sync and even more so now that they were together. Oishi would definitely know that there was something wrong right off the bat and Eiji didn't want to worry his boyfriend. He went and got into position to play the captain. Tezuka served and Eiji jumped but when he tried to swing his shoulder froze up. 'What the hell?' he thought as he weakly returned Tezuka's serve. Tezuka returned the hit giving his teammate a questioning look. Eiji ran at the ball again and hit it even though he felt his shoulder starting to freeze up a little bit. Tezuka returned the ball and it went over Eiji's head. Eiji took this chance to rub his shoulder a bit.

"Are you OK Eiji?" Tezuka asked looking at Eiji who was now rubbing his shoulder.

"I'm fine. Just slept on my shoulder wrong and it is cramping up a little. Need to rub it for a second and I'll be good to go, nya," Eiji said smiling at the captain.

"OK, but this adds ten laps to your run after practice and another ten for every time we have to stop," Tezuka declared.

Eiji's eyes widened and he finished rubbing his shoulder before going back to play. Eiji's shoulder didn't get any better, but he wasn't about to let Tezuka give him more laps. They finished the match and to no one's surprise Tezuka had won. Eiji walked off the court feeling strangely satisfied until he remembered what he was going to have to do again that night. He would have to find another place to sleep considering it was never a good idea to sleep in the same place twice. After laps all of the regulars walked to the locker room and got their things out. Eiji was lost in his own world concerned about what was going to happen that night.

"Eiji? EIJI?" He heard someone call his name and turned to see his teammates looking at him. All of them had worried expressions written across their face. One person in particular seemed worried and that was Oishi.

"Yeah? You don't have to yell Oishi," Eiji pouted not liking to be yelled at.

"You didn't respond for the first five times. What's up with you today? Is everything alright?" Oishi asked. He was concerned for his boyfriend. Something seemed off but he couldn't quite place what it was.

"Yeah I am fine I was just thinking about food," Eiji said, which was true. He knew Oishi would see through any lie so he had decided to tell something that was true but not the truth.

"Well then come on let's go get you some food," Oishi said putting his arm around his boyfriend, "My treat."

"OK," Eiji said feeling bad about having his boyfriend pay. He didn't want to mooch, but since Oishi had offered he couldn't resist. This may be one of the only meals he got for the next day or so. They went to get some burgers and Eiji got what he normally got so he wouldn't worry Oishi. With each bite though, Eiji's guilt grew. He felt like he was using Oishi. He should be loving Oishi not using his money to get food. Eiji finished his burger and threw away the trash.

"Eiji, where are you going?" Oishi asked as he saw his boyfriend walking towards the door. They had both finished, but usually Eiji lingered for a while longer.

"Nya, I forgot I promised to help my mom clean. It's my turn today and I am going to get my butt chewed out if I don't get home," Eiji smiled and continued walking. He got to the door and he pushed it open while waving with one hand to Oishi. When he was a safe distance away from the restaurant Eiji began to run. He ran until he got to the general store. He walked in and quickly picked out a blanket and paid for it before anyone could see him. He walked down the street and found some new steps that he could sleep on. As usual Eiji balled up his jacket on his book bag and made a pillow. He wrapped the blanket around him getting very cozy in it before he felt himself drifting off. He wished so much that he could have stayed with Oishi a little longer. He wished that they could have held hands and maybe even shared a peck on the lips. Eiji knew though that the time had come to protect Oishi because Eiji would never be able to live with himself if Oishi was kicked out too.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: So here is chapter three of Golden Together. I hope you are enjoying. let us see what happens to Eiji now. How will it influence the team? Read on. PS I do not own PoT.**

Eiji woke up the next morning and did the same routine he had the day previous. He folded up the blanket and ran for the bus. After he showered at school and sprayed on some random cologne he found he rushed to class and once again took his seat near Fuji to begin the day.

"Saa, Eiji, what's that smell?" Fuji said looking curiously at his friend. He had never thought of Eiji as one to wear cologne.

"Just some cologne I found. Does it smell weird?" Eiji asked hoping it didn't.

"Saa, no it doesn't. It actually smells nice. I just wouldn't take you for the kind of person to wear it."

"Fuji, Kikamaru, shut it so we can begin the lesson," the teacher said as she wrote on the chalkboard.

Both of them turned their attention to the blackboard and started taking notes. Fuji kept stealing glances at his friend. There was something wrong and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

Eiji could feel Fuji looking over at him occasionally. It wasn't the normal friendly stare that he sometimes got from his friend. Eiji could tell that it was the piercing blue stare that Fuji only used when he was trying to figure something out. Eiji started to panic inside. No one could find out about him, especially not Oishi or Fuji. No one could know what situation he was in or where he was going every night. He had to think of some way that they wouldn't find out. Then an idea came to him and even though it seemed a bit cruel, Eiji decided that he would go with it. When the bell rang everyone got up and Fuji left the room first. Eiji followed quietly behind him. However, when they got to an intersection of hallways Eiji made a left turn and snuck as quietly as he could down the hall and out of the school. He ran away from that place with his backpack and went to find the nearest burger place so he could get some food to go. Once he found the fast food restaurant, he ordered some food to go and went to find the nearest alley. He figured he could sit behind something so that nobody, or at least no one he knew, would see him.

"Hey Eiji, you and Oishi wanna play me and Taka in doubles?" Fuji asked. When he didn't get a response he turned around and his eyes shot wide open. His friend was gone. 'Where could he have gotten to? He probably used his cat-like skills to sneak off and go down to practice,' Fuji thought although something in his stomach told him that wasn't the case at all. Fuji headed down to practice and walked into the locker room. He saw Eiji's bag in the locker room and figured his friend might be outside waiting for them. Just then he heard a voice behind him.

"Hey, Fuji, have you seen Eiji around? He hasn't shown up, but we all thought he might be with you," Oishi inquired looking at the tensai standing in front of him.

"No I haven't seen him since last period. I thought he was walking behind me, but when I turned around, he wasn't there," Fuji responded, his blood turning to ice.

Oishi ran out of the locker room. He approached Tezuka. "Tezuka, I'm skipping practice. Eiji is missing and I have to find him. Please understand and I am sorry for missing practice."

"Go find him and bring him back," Tezuka ordered also worried for their acrobatic player. After hearing these words Oishi ran off the school grounds in search of his boyfriend.

'Eiji, where are you? Are you sick? Why wouldn't you tell me? What are you hiding from me, Eiji? You should know I am always there for you. You have me worried now. Why did you run off? Why did you leave so suddenly the other night? Did I do something to hurt you? Please be alright,' Oishi thought as he ran down the streets to Eiji's house. Once he got there he knocked on the door. He was shocked when a woman holding a baby answered the door.

"May I help you?" She asked in a cheerful voice.

"Yes, I would like to speak to Eiji Kikamaru?" Oishi requested hesitantly and it sounded more like a question as a knot started forming in his stomach. Something wasn't right here.

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but no one by that name lives here. Have a nice day," she said and closed the door in Oishi's face.

'HE MOVED? He moved and he didn't tell me? Does he not want us to be together anymore? Why wouldn't he tell me something like that? Sure he isn't the brightest bulb in the box, but he isn't stupid enough to forget to mention that he moved. Eiji where the hell are you?' Oishi thought as he once again ran off in search of his boyfriend. He checked all the possible places that Eiji might be, but failed to find his boyfriend in any of them. Then Oishi tried the post office to see if they had received a forwarding address, but the post master said he had not received a forwarding address yet. He promised though to tell Oishi if he received one. Oishi thanked the man and ran out the door to search for his boyfriend some more.

Just then he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket he took it out and picked it up. "Hello?" Oishi queried into the phone. He hadn't bothered to look at the caller ID and hoped that it was Eiji calling.

"Where are you? The sun is setting, dinner is ready, and you are not home young man," his mother chided on the other line.

"I'm sorry mom. Eiji went missing and I was trying to find him. He moved and he is not at any of the normal places we would go," Oishi explained worry filling his voice.

"I'm sure he was going to tell you when they got settled in. We can't do anything for him right now so why don't you come home and have some supper. Eiji will be fine dear. I will bet he is eating some dinner somewhere with his family, too. Now get home before something bad happens to you, young man," his mother demanded and hung up the phone.

Oishi looked up at the darkening sky. As much as he hated to admit it, his mother was right. Even if Eiji was missing they couldn't do anything about it yet. Oishi knew that his boyfriend would have to be missing for 48 hours before they even thought about filing a missing persons report. Oishi started to head in the direction of his house trying to convince himself that his boyfriend was safe. It failed though and Oishi broke down in tears halfway home. 'Please, Eiji, wherever you are, be OK. I will find you. I will help you,' he thought as he walked in his front door drying his eyes. He sat down to eat with his family. He didn't participate in conversation however; he was too worried about Eiji because deep in his gut something told him Eiji was in serious trouble.

Meanwhile, Eiji was sitting behind the same dumpster trying to keep warm. It was a chilly night and even a blanket wasn't doing him much good. Eiji shivered as he tried to pull the blanket tighter around his body. He coughed twice and then sneezed. 'Seriously, am I getting sick?' Eiji thought as he coughed again. He wouldn't be surprised if he was getting sick. Not enough food and sleeping outside would do that to the healthiest person. Eiji knew though that the best thing to getting better was sleep. He curled up in a ball and closed his eyes and fell into a restless night of sleep.

(next morning)

The next morning Eiji woke up and immediately knew he wasn't going to be attending school that day. His head felt like it weighed a ton and he was very hot and sweaty. He reclined his head back on his "pillow" and tried to get some more sleep. His efforts were futile though. He kept coughing and reclining wasn't helping that much. Eiji knew that he needed to cough up whatever was in his lungs so he rolled over on his side and let the coughs shake his body. He hoped that Oishi wouldn't come looking for him. Eiji didn't care about himself. He just wanted one of them to be safe. Since he was already out on the streets he wanted his boyfriend to be safe from harm. More coughs shook Eiji's body as he thought of this and he wished he had the strength in him to go get some water.

(At school)

Fuji sat in his seat in the classroom. He was waiting for a bubbly redhead to burst through the door dancing around about something or other, but he hadn't seen Eiji at all that morning. Fuji became even more concerned when the bell rang and there was no sign of his friend. As far as he could remember Eiji had never missed a day of school. He was always on time and always chattering about something before class started. Fuji pushed his thoughts aside for the time being and focused on the lesson being taught. He knew thought that he would have to tell Oishi during practice. Fuji looked up as the bell rang signaling the end of the day. He had hardly noticed the time fly by that quickly. Fuji rushed down to practice nervous about telling Oishi what had happened.

"Fuji where is Eiji?" Oishi questioned upon seeing Fuji enter the room alone.

"That's what I came to tell you. He wasn't in school today, Oishi," Fuji stated worry in his voice. The whole room went silent. They looked at Fuji for a moment.

"That's weird. He never misses. He moved, too. I don't understand why he wouldn't tell us," Oishi said a tear running down his cheek.

"He what?" Momo balked.

"I went by his house yesterday to see if he was alright. A strange lady answered the door and said no one by his name lives there anymore. What happened to him? I just want to know that he is alright," Oishi said grabbing his racket, "we can't file a report until tomorrow evening."

Everyone looked at Oishi with sympathy. He was right though, they couldn't really do anything about it until the next day. They did the only thing that they could think of doing, play tennis. No one was energetic about it today though because all of them had concerns about the absence of Eiji. His bubbly presence could make a bad day better with a few words and without that energy none of them could find the strength to enjoy the rest of the day.

**A/N: SO what will happen now? what is wrong with Eiji? Will the team be able to help him? R&R!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Find out what has happened to Eiji. I do not own PoT**

Eiji woke up and sniffed. He was still sick, but he knew he had to go to school. If he didn't then by that evening Oishi and the rest of the team would certainly file a missing persons report and all of Tokyo would be searching for him. Not to mention if the police found him in this condition and living where he was, child protective services would be called. Then he would be shipped off to anywhere and everywhere and Eiji feared he might never see Oishi again. Eiji dragged himself to the bus stop and slowly made his way through his morning routine. He tried to have a bounce in his step and a smile on his face, but he was just too sick today to even care. He walked into class only a few moments before the bell rang. He plopped down next to Fuji and gave his friend a weak smile.

"Saa, Eiji it's good to see you. Are you ok?" Fuji asked looking at his friend. The usually bubbly redhead had shuffled into class and unceremoniously dropped into his chair.

"Yeah. Just have a cold is all. I'm over it, but a little stuffed up," Eiji lied hoping that Fuji wouldn't see through it as easily as Oishi would. Thankfully, Fuji didn't, or pretended not to notice and they got started with the lesson. Soon though, Eiji felt himself getting hotter as the fever crept up his spine and found its way to his cheeks. His head was pounding and he suddenly didn't feel well at all. Eiji rested his chin on his book and tried to pay attention to what the teacher was saying. Her words were blurring together though and they sounded like one string of sound coming out of someone's mouth. It worsened and her voice became a continuous drone that sounded nothing like her normal voice. Pain struck his temple as the teacher became a blob and the room started to swim before Eiji. He knew this was bad. His perfect vision was failing him. Eiji let his head tip onto his elbow as everything went black.

Fuji was sitting in his seat pretending to follow along in his textbook while his mind was a thousand miles away daydreaming about what he would be doing over the upcoming break. His thoughts were interrupted by the voice of the teacher.

"Sorry what page are we on? I wasn't paying attention," Fuji admitted shyly. He hated it when he got called out for not paying attention and had to make a fool of himself.

"I didn't ask you to read anything Fuji, I asked you to wake up Kikumaru. Sleeping is not permitted in my class. He should know better than that," the teacher made a shooing motion with her hand telling Fuji to get on with the task he was assigned while she went on teaching.

"Hey Eiji? Get up, come on you know how teacher hates when we sleep in class. Eiji? Eiji come on if you are trying to pull a prank it isn't funny," Fuji said gently reaching out to shake his buddy. He shook Eiji a bit harder and instantly became worried when Eiji didn't respond. "Eiji? Eiji? Teacher he won't respond. He isn't waking up."

"Kikumaru you wake up immediately or you will not be welcomed back in my classroom," the teacher declared marching over to her student's desk. She glanced over at a worried Fuji with a look that said, 'I will wake him up.' She shook the boy a bit harder. "Kikumaru wake up, I will not tolerate you sleeping in my classroom. Kikumaru? Wake up! Eiji? Someone go and get the doctor, quickly," she ordered to whoever felt like listening. She reached out and touched her student's forehead and her eyes widened. It was hot, very hot.

Fuji felt like it took hours for the doctor to come back with the nurse by his side, even though they had only been waiting a few minutes. The doctor starting talking to the teacher, but Fuji wasn't really listening to what they had to say. He was worried about his friend. Eiji had never passed out before; hell Eiji had never been sick. The doctor and nurse decided that it was best they take Eiji down to the infirmary and check him out. It was only when the nurse and doctor were carrying his friend away that a thought came to Fuji. He needed to call Oishi and Tezuka and let them know what was going on. Fuji ran up to his teacher and asked her to call the other classrooms.

"I need to go find Oishi in the other class, he is best friends with Eiji and this will hit him pretty hard," Fuji explained as he ran out of the room. Fuji knew they were more than best friends, but he hadn't wanted the whole class to know his friend's sexual preferences. Fuji tore down the halls getting closer and closer to Oishi's classroom. Halfway there he was met by a running, very confused looking Oishi.

"Fuji, what is going on? I was just told to go to the infirmary, but I don't know why," Oishi said looking at his friend for answers. Oishi's stomach knotted as he saw something he rarely saw in Fuji's eyes, fear.

"We need to hurry. It's Eiji. He fell asleep during class and teacher asked me to wake him and I tried. He wouldn't wake up though. We had to call the doctor. Last I saw he is still unresponsive. We don't know what is wrong with him yet," Fuji breathed as Oishi's eyes widened. They both started to run down the hall. When they got to the infirmary Oishi was the first one to go into the room. He looked and saw Tezuka standing there. Oishi then turned to the bed and his stomach dropped when he saw Eiji laying there. Eiji had no color to his face and he was trembling.

"What happened? Is he going to be alright? What are his vitals like?" Oishi probed plaguing the doctor with questions. He was worried for his boyfriend.

"He is doing alright. His temperature is 102.5 degrees. Not high enough to be of serious medical concern. He will be in and out of it until the fever breaks," the doctor assured the others as Oishi came over to sit down by Eiji's bed. Oishi reached out and touched his boyfriend's head and his eyes widened when he felt how hot Eiji's head was.

"Have you reached any conclusions about what may be causing the fever?" Oishi asked.

"From the exams that I have done, it appears that he has the flu. It is nothing to be too terribly concerned with, but he will need to be watched until his fever breaks. We need to set him up with an iv line for fluids since he is dehydrated from the fever, and he probably hasn't been drinking as much as he should," the doctor replied before standing up and excusing himself, "I need to go see about calling his parents and make my report to the principal."

Eiji had woken up when the doctor explained why he was leaving and clasped Oishi's hand in a firm grip shocking the other teen. With a raspy voice, he panicked, "He can't call my parents."

"What do you mean Eiji? Why can't he? I went to your house yesterday, did you move? What is going on with you? I am worried!" Oishi interrogated his boyfriend with concern more than evident in his voice. He didn't mean to sound so harsh or to force the issue, but something was going on with Eiji and he needed to know what that was. He couldn't stand by and watch the person he loved most in pain, not if there was something he could do to help.

Looking around him at the three faces surrounding him, he knew he could confide in him. These were his friends and he was tired of running, tired of hiding it from them. He also knew that if it was a choice between the doctor and his friends, he would choose his friends. Once they heard the truth, Oishi would know what was really going on and understand that he had to stay away from him. It was for the best. With a heavy heart, Eiji glanced down at his hand joined with Oishi's and started, "My parents left me and disowned me."

"What do you mean?" Fuji asked his blue eyes wide pinning his hyper friend with an intense stare.

"About a week ago when I came home from tennis practice I opened the door to my house and all I found was a duffle and a note. They found out that Oishi and I are together. The note told me I was no longer worthy of my family name. They had moved out and I needed to be out of there by six, so I left," Eiji broke off his sentence and started to have a coughing fit.

"Eiji, who have you been staying with?" Tezuka asked in a serious tone. He saw the answer in the redhead's eyes and he didn't like it one bit.

"No one," Eiji said as he looked at his lap. He felt three pairs of eyes on him and knew that wasn't going to be enough of an explanation for his friends, " I was sleeping wherever I could find a place. Since it has been cold lately I've taken to sleeping behind the dumpster on fifth and third. Little less wind back there."

"Eiji?" was all Oishi could manage to get out as a tear slipped down his face. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His boyfriend had been living on the streets? Only one question entered Oishi's mind: Why hadn't Eiji come to him first thing?

"Eiji if you were not laying there in that bed you would be running more laps than you could count right now," Tezuka snapped walking over to Eiji's side, " Why didn't you ask one of us for help?" Tezuka wanted to slap Eiji right about now. He didn't know what had possessed his teammate to think that living on the streets and not asking for help was the way to go about doing things.

"Why didn't you come to me? Do you think that the way you are living is OK? Do you not trust me? Don't you love me anymore, Eiji?" Oishi asked another tear falling down his face.

"I didn't tell you because we can't be together anymore, Oishi. I can't have the same thing happen to you. I rather only one of us be on the streets and since I already am I can't risk it. I love you, but I didn't come to you because I love you too much to see you hurt," Eiji managed to choke out.

"You don't want to see me hurt? How do you think I feel right now? It's painful to see you laying here like this. You are lucky, Eiji. You are lucky that you decided to come to school. You are lucky that your teacher noticed that you might be sleeping. You were lucky that Fuji was there to tell the teacher you weren't responding. Look at what you have in your arm Eiji. An IV line because you got too dehydrated from this fever. You could have died, Eiji and I couldn't have lived with that," Oishi fumed. It was one of the rare occasions that he was actually, truly mad at Eiji.

"Well what am I supposed to do," Eiji tried to bite back, but it only came out as little more than a whisper.

"You are going to come home with me. And you are going to stay there with me," Oishi stated with conviction.

"That can't happen, Oishi. I already said that I don't want the same thing happening to you."

"My mom knows," Oishi said looking at Eiji. He saw the slightest bit of shock register of Eiji's face, "She knows and she said that she supports our relationship. She will do everything to help us grow as us. SO you are coming home with me and we will take good care of you."

"What about your father?" Eiji asked. He didn't want more people getting kicked out or punished because of him.

"I asked my mom and she said that she will help us deal with him. Now no more questions. You are coming home with me."

Eiji nodded. He nestled his head deeper into the pillow. He didn't want to fall asleep right now, but that sounded nice.

"Get some rest, you need it," Fuji said as he noticed his friend's eyelids starting to droop.

"I'll be right here when you wake up," Oishi promised. He smiled to himself as his boyfriend's eyes closed and his breathing became steady and even.

"We are going to go and tell coach about this," Fuji said walking towards the door as he motioned for Tezuka to come with him. They left the room knowing that Oishi wanted some alone time with his boyfriend. They headed down the halls and soon came to coach Ryuzaki's office. Tezuka knocked.

"Come in," Ryuzaki said surprised that anyone would be visiting her during the day. She was shocked when Tezuka and Fuji walked into her office.

"Coach Ryuzaki, Oishi and Eiji will not be at practice today. Eiji will not be in practice for at least the rest of the week," Tezuka stated. He got a confused look from the coach, but before he could continue Fuji cut in.

"Eiji came to school today and he said he had a cold. Halfway through class the teacher asked me to wake him, but when I tried he wouldn't wake up. We got the doctor and Eiji was taken to the infirmary. He has the flu and a fever. The doctor started him on an IV for fluids because Eiji hadn't been drinking enough. The doctor said he was going to call Eiji's parents when he spilled it to us. His parents kicked him out and he has been living on the street for the past week and that is how he got so sick," Fuji finished his stomach knotting.

"I'm going to go down to the infirmary before we start practice. If I am not there, Tezuka, you get started," she ordered as she walked out the door. She rushed down to the infirmary to check on her player. When she got there she clasped her hand over her mouth stifling a gasp. Her player was lying there with an IV in his arm and he was shivering.

"We aren't going to be at practice today. He is coming home with me," Oishi whispered as he saw the coach come in.

"I understand. Oishi, don't feel rushed to come back to practice yourself. Come back to practice when he is ready. I want you to take good care of our acrobatic player," she whispered back, "I'm going to go down to practice now. Take care."

(at practice)

Tezuka and Fuji arrived in the locker room before everyone else. Fuji turned to face Tezuka, they had to talk.

"Are we going to tell the rest of the team about this?" Fuji asked looking at Tezuka.

"They knew that Eiji missed school the other day. They will figure out something is wrong if both he and Oishi are not here today. So, in answer to your question, yes, Fuji we are going to tell them," Tezuka responded.

"Tell us what?" Momo's voice sounded as he sprung into the locker room.

"We are waiting until everyone is here," Tezuka stated glaring at Momo. Slowly the Regulars filed in. Each one looked around, clearly searching for the bubbling redhead and his doubles partner. Just as everyone was about to ask the same question TEzuka cleared his throat. Everyone turned to look at their captain. Fuji was standing by Tezuka's side and the atmosphere was tense.

"I have something to tell all of you. Oishi will not be attending practice today and Eiji is going to be out for a while. Eiji became ill today in class. It was determined that he had the flu. He is in the infirmary on an IV of fluids due to dehydration," Tezuka said looking at all of his teammates trying to gauge their reaction.

**A/N: How will the team respond to what happened? Wait for the next chapter to find out. R&R!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: So now we know that Oishi's mom knows and the team has just found out. What is going to happen now? Oh! I don't own PoT although I wish I did.**

"What the hell happened to him? Why did he get sick?" Momo snapped. He had never seen Eiji sick and he couldn't understand how his teammate randomly came down with an illness.

"The way anyone gets a flu, Momo. It just happens," Fuji responded. He wasn't going to reveal what Eiji had spilled in the infirmary. As it was he trying to hide the worry that he held for his friend. He wanted to go and see Eiji so badly, but he knew that his friend was in the good care of Oishi.

"Is he going to be alright?" Kawamura asked worrying about his teammate.

"He is going to be fine. He just needs a lot of rest. Now let us get to practice. Standing here talking about Eiji is not going to help us advance," Tezuka said ushering them all out of the room.

(in the infirmary)

Oishi sat by his boyfriend's side. He hated seeing Eiji like this. Every so often the red head would roll his head to the other side or snuggle deeper into the pillows. Oishi was lost in thought when he felt a tap on his shoulder and looked up to see the doctor looking down at him.

"I am going to call his parents to come pick him up in about twenty minutes or so OK?" The doctor stated looking at Oishi with question in his eyes.

Oishi's stomach knotted. They couldn't tell the doctor what had happened. If they did the doctor would have to get protective services involved. Oishi knew what that meant: Eiji would be dragged off to who knows where, put into therapy for god knows what, and stuffed with multiple random drugs to cure problems that he didn't even have. No, Oishi had to think fast to keep his boyfriend away from all that. "They won't be home. You see the family went out of town to visit their cousin who just had a baby. Eiji still had to go to school so he is staying with my family for the time being. I will call my mother shortly to see if she can come pick us up and take us home," Oishi lied. He hoped it had worked and the doctor wouldn't have any further questions.

"Alright you can go call your mother. Tell her to come in around 20 minutes. That is when the bag of fluids should be done. He should be strong enough to walk with a little help by then. If anything gets worse or his symptoms don't improve by later tonight call his primary care doctor and get him examined again. You know that these things can lead to more serious illness. Not that I think it will, but better to be safe than dead," the doctor stated walking out of the room. Oishi went to the phone in the room and dialed his home number.

"Hello, Oishi residence, who may I ask who is calling?" A female voice came on the other line.

"Hey mom it's me. I need you to pick up Eiji and I in about twenty minutes if you can. He got really sick in school today. He is coming home with me. I don't want to discuss the details on the phone so I will tell you later. Can you come and pick us up?" Oishi inquired hoping that his mom could.

"Yes I can. I will see you in about twenty minutes in the infirmary," his mother reiterated. She hung up the home phone with a thousand questions running through her head. She figured though that she would get the answers from her son on the ride home.

"Hey Eiji? You are going to have to get up," Oishi gently shook his friend. He was relieved when deep blue eyes met his own.

"Too tired, Oishi," Eiji responded covering his eyes with his free hand. All he wanted to do was sleep right now.

"My mom is going to be here in twenty minutes. We are taking you home Eiji. You can't stay in the schools infirmary forever. Now how about we at least get you sitting up for now?" Oishi asked as he put a hand behind Eiji's back and helped him into a sitting position. He steadied Eiji with his hand and brushed some bangs out of his boyfriend's eyes.

"What time is it?" Eiji asked yawning. He was still a little drowsy, but was feeling more on the awake side.

"It's about 4:20 in the afternoon," Oishi said looking at his watch. He couldn't believe that much time had passed. He was glad though that Eiji was looking a little better. There was more color to his face and he seemed a little stronger.

"I slept that long?!" Eiji exclaimed as he looked at Oishi. 'Why didn't anyone wake me up?' He thought as he felt himself starting to get a little sweaty again.

"You needed it Eiji. You are looking a lot better now that you got some sleep. How are you feeling?" Oishi probed looking at Eiji. He felt that there was something off and he needed to know what it was.

"I feel fine. I'm just feeling a little bit hot again. It's the same way I felt when I was in class," Eiji explained looking at a panicked Oishi.

"Do you feel like you are going to pass out? Do you need the doctor?" Oishi interrogated. He was worried now. If Eiji kept passing out every so often, that could be a sign of some underlying issue.

"No I don't feel like I'm going to faint. I think the fluids helped with that. I just feel uncomfortable and sleepy," Eiji admitted stifling another yawn.

"Well let's just get your temperature taken, just to make sure," Oishi fussed as he went to find the doctor. He came back moments later with the doctor in tow.

"Oishi tells me you're a feeling a little on the hot side Eiji," the doctor more asked than said as he fished a thermometer out of his pocket. He put it under Eiji's tongue and waited for a few moments until the thermometer beeped. "You have actually come down a little to 101.5. Still watch the fever until it breaks. Looks like you are going to be fine though, young man." The doctor looked at the bag of fluid and seeing that it had emptied he went to the cabinet and got out some gauze and surgical tape. He came over to Eiji and carefully peeled off the tape that had been holding the IV in place. The doctor then pulled out the catheter and pressed a square of gauze to Eiji's arm. Once enough pressure had been applied the doctor ripped off a piece of surgical tape and placed it over the gauze. He gave Eiji a smile and a pat on the shoulder before walking out of the room.

"Thank you doctor," Oishi mumbled as the doctor left. He turned back to his boyfriend and gave him a small smile. Just then he heard a knock at the infirmary door and turned to see his mother standing there.

"Ready to go home you two?" She asked looking at her son and his boyfriend. She was trying to be friendly and not shocked at how unwell Eiji looked. He was thinner than when she had last seen him and he looked purely exhausted from the flu that was working on him.

"Yup we are," Oishi responded, "Let's get you to a more comfortable bed, Eiji. I'll help you to the car."

"Thanks," Eiji smiled as he put one arm over Oishi's neck and let the other sag at his side. He felt Oishi's arm go around his waist and support him. They slowly walked together until they reached the car. Once there Oishi gently helped Eiji slide into the car and then shut the door. Oishi ran around to the other side and scooted in beside Eiji who was looking rather sleepy again.

"Tired?" Oishi questioned a small smile playing on his lips.

"Yeah. Just walking to the car tired me out," Eiji yawned. He felt his eyelids drooping. He rested his head on Oishi's shoulder and let himself drift off into a peaceful sleep. Soon he was woken up by his shoulder being shaken. He looked up into the eyes of Oishi and half attempted a smile.

"Let's get you to bed, Eiji. Are you strong enough to walk?" he once-overed his boyfriend as eiji nodded yes. Oishi supported his partner as they walked to the bedroom together. When Eiji saw the bed he was so happy to get into it. It had sheets and a mattress and soft fluffy pillows.

"I'll get you some extra pillows honey," Oishi's mother fussed as she went to the hall closet and got out a few more pillows.

"Do you think a cool cloth for your forehead would help with some of the discomfort?" Oishi asked nervously. Eiji nodded and Oishi rushed off to get the necessary supplies. He came back with a cool cloth in one hand and a glass of water in the other.

"I'm not thirsty Oishi," Eiji responded thinking it odd that he had been brought a glass of water.

"I know you may not be right now, but we don't want a repeat of what happened earlier so I am going to leave this here. Drink whenever you need to and don't be afraid to ask for more," Oishi responded positioning the cloth on Eiji's forehead.

"He is right sweetie. You need to keep up your liquid intake. Dehydration is very bad and as you found out today highly dangerous. So drink up. And if you feel like something a little later you can have some soup and maybe some crackers if you think your stomach can handle that," Oishi's mother informed the redhead while fluffing his pillows.

"Thank-you, but for now I think my body is telling me that sleep is the best option," Eiji breathed yawning once again.

"Get some sleep sweetie. We will be right in the other room if you need anything," she said. She gave Oishi a stern look and motioned for him to follow her. He obeyed and went with her into the next room. Oishi knew what this was about and he didn't want to tell his mother what she had to hear. Once she had closed the door Oishi's mother rounded on him her arms folded and a serious expression on her face. "OK Shūichirō what is going on? Why did I have to come and pick up Eiji from school? Why is he here with us and not at home?" His mother demanded answers in a dead serious tone.

"Eiji's family isn't in the picture anymore, mom. They abandoned and disowned him," Oishi trailed off looking at the floor. He hadn't wanted to beat around the bush and he knew it was no use to do things like that with his mother.

"When was this?" She asked not really wanting to know the answer.

"About a week ago," Oishi whispered.

"Where has he been living?" she whispered to her son as a huge knot formed in her throat. 'It can't be,' she thought, 'Not Eiji. Not him. He wouldn't do something like that.'

"Wherever he could find a place. Mom, Eiji has been living on the streets," Oishi tried to stop a tear from rolling down his cheek, but it was too late. "He didn't come to us because he didn't know that you knew we were more than friends. He thought you would kick me out too and he didn't want both of us living on the streets. He told us today. That's how he got so sick." The tears were flowing steadily down Oishi's face and he didn't try to stop them. He felt his mother's arms wrap around him and instantly felt horrible. More tears came when he thought of the fact that his boyfriend would never be hugged again by his real mother. That Eiji would never get to see or touch or kiss the person that once read him bedtime stories , gave him a bath, or helped him with his homework. "It's not fair," Oishi mumbled into his mother's shirt.

"What isn't sweetie?" She asked. She knew the answer, but she wanted to hear what her son had to say. She had learned that it was best that they talk things out and for her to let him say what he was thinking.

"It isn't fair that they left him because he is gay," Oishi mumbled holding onto his mother's shirt.

Oishi's mother was shocked. She didn't know what she was expecting, but she hadn't expected that. 'What kind of horrible person would leave someone as genuinely sweet as Eiji to fend for himself just because he liked the same sex?' She couldn't understand his parents. Just because Eiji was in love with another boy didn't make him a bad person. Eiji was a rare genuinely good person. She could not ask for a better boyfriend for her son. She looked down and saw green eyes looking back at her.

"Why don't you go and get some rest yourself, munchkin," she crooned, "You have been through a lot today as well."

"That sounds nice. Will you wake me up in about an hour if I am not already up?" Oishi asked.

"Yes." As soon as she heard the door to her son's bedroom door close she walked to her own room. She softly closed the door as the anger started to boil up inside her. She was angry at Eiji's parents. She was furious with them: for abandoning a child, for hurting him. If they saw the same child that she did, lying in a bed fighting the flu and worse for wear, would they feel even the slightest bit of guilt? Would they even care? She punched her bedspread hard before crumpling on it in a heap on top of it and that is when the tears came. 'Why you? Why you, Eiji?' she thought, 'Why couldn't it have been anyone else? Why did they abandon you? You have been nothing short of amazingly nice to this family and you have always been caring to those around you. So why the hell did you get dealt this hand of cards. Why the hell couldn't something good have happened to you?' she sank deeper into the bed as she cried harder.

**A/N: SO Eiji is finally off the streets in a warm bed. R&R!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: SO here is the next chapter of golden together. Sorry it took so long but I have been busy as hell. Big thank to awesome mcangel1976! Arata is Oishi's dad for head's up in this chapter and I don't own pot. Unfortunately.**

Arata was walking home from the train eager to get home to see his wife and children. He had a spring in his step and was happy for the day had gone well. His happiness faded when he got within the vicinity of his house. He smelled something cooking and if his nose was anything to go by the something that he smelled was fried eel sausage, his favorite. He became worried at what was wrong that his wife was cooking that. Were they getting divorced? HadShūichirō failed out of school? Was his daughter pregnant? He ran up to the door losing his usual cool and burst in. He proceeded to rush into the kitchen and confirmed his suspicions about the eel sausage.

"Sweetie? What is going on? Is everything OK between us? I can be home earlier if that is what you need. Just tell me what you need and I will do my best to make sure that you are happy," Arata said looking at his wife. She finished cooking the eel and unceremoniously plopped it onto a plate. She handed it to her husband.

"What I need is to talk to you," she said sitting down with her own plate. She looked over at her husband and saw the worry written across his face. "If you are wondering if I would want to break up with you no i do not. Shūichirō dinner is ready and your father is home," Mrs. Oishi called out knowing that her son wanted to be there to tell her husband about Eiji.

"Hey dad," Oishi said as he walked into the kitchen and grabbed a plate. He hesitantly sat down at the table. He was nervous to tell his father that he was gay and that Eiji had been thrown out.

"What's this all about is everything OK?" Arata asked looking between the two. His brow furrowed when he saw his son exchange a glance with his wife.

"Dad I'm gay," Oishi said and braced himself for the blow of how disappointed his father was going to be.

"I know," Arata simply replied looking at the two in front of him.

"Wait you knew?!" Oishi asked. 'How had his father known that he was gay? Why didn't he tell him?' Oishi thought.

"The way you talked about Eiji was not talk for the love of a friend, but the talk of a deeper more significant love," Arata said taking another bite of food.

"I see. Eiji and I are together, Dad. And there is one more thing….mom," Oishi said looking at his mother. He didn't know if he could emotionally handle telling his father that his boyfriend was laying upstairs sick and homeless.

"I'll take care of it dear. If you want to take your dinner somewhere else I'll make that exception for tonight," she said as she watched he son walk up the stairs with his food.

"SO what is this one more thing, Miyabi, dear?" Arata asked confused as to why his strong son needed to leave the table.

"Arata, Eiji's here," she said a defeated look in her eyes, "He's not doing well either. I had to pick him up from school today. He passed out in class and was taken to the infirmary. He has the flu and they had to give him fluids because he was too dehydrated and…."

"Why isn't he at home with his family? Why couldn't they get him?" Arata cut in almost angrily. Then he saw the tears rolling down his wife's face, "What is it? What's wrong?"

"They abandoned him, Arata. Eiji's family abandoned him because he is homosexual. For the past week he has been living on the streets," she sobbed. Arata dropped his fork and stared at his wife unable to believe the words that he was hearing. He didn't want to believe that someone would even entertain the thought of abandoning the sweet redhead let alone actually doing it. Arata talked to his wife for a while soothing her a telling her it was going to be alright. They talked for a while longer until Arata looked up at the kitchen clock. It read 9:00 PM. He decided that it was time for both of them to get to bed.

"Let's go upstairs. You can get a bath and we can go to bed. You have had a long day dear," Arata said ushering his wife up the stairs. The continued to talk as they walked up the stairs.

"I told him that he is welcome to stay here, Arata. I knew that would be fine with you. We can afford to keep him here," she said. Arata smiled at her and escorted her to their bedroom.

Eiji had woken up feeling hot and the need to use the bathroom. He heard some footsteps on the stairs and realized that it must be Oishi's parents coming up for bed. He then heard that they were talking and remained still to see if he could catch anything that they were saying. He couldn't make out anything until they were right next to the room and only then did he make out one phrase.

"We can't afford to keep him here," Oishi's mother said. Eiji gasped at this. 'They are keeping me here when they can't afford it? I can't impose on them any longer I have to get out. I want them to be happy and if they can't afford me…well I'm not their problem,' he thought trying to come up with some way to sneak off. He had the urge to go to the bathroom again and that is when it came to him. he would sneak out after he closed the bathroom door. He contemplated it and figured that he would have to leave the duffle behind. He could find ways to replace the things that were in there. The schoolbooks wouldn't be an issue since he would have to stop attending school. Same with the uniform. Clothing and food presented a problem though, he didn't have enough money to replace those. Eiji figured he may be able to lie about his age and get away with it being so tall. He nodded to himself and got up out of the bed to go to the bathroom. Just then a light clicked on and he inwardly groaned. He had forgotten about Oishi.

"Eiji? Where are you going this time of night?" he asked a confused look on his face.

"Just to the bathroom nya," Eiji said. He tried to hurry out the door when he was stopped once again by Oishi's voice.

"Call if you need anything OK? I'll wait for the door to click on your side," he said getting up. Eiji reluctantly got up and went out into the hallway. Eiji went slowly down to the bathroom and then shut the door.

He waited to hear the click of the bedroom door before he dared to open the bathroom door a crack. When he found that Oishi had closed their door he quietly snuck out and started towards the stairs. He stepped on a few creaky spots on the rug and each time his head shot up, but thankfully the door remained closed. He tiptoed down the stairs and carefully made his way to the front door and pulled it open. It creaked a bit and Eiji hastily stopped and looked around quickly before proceeding to open the door just wide enough so he could slip out onto the front porch. He breathed a sigh of relief as he found himself on the front porch. He started to walk when he was stopped by a voice.

Oishi had awoken wondering when Eiji would get back from using the bathroom. Something didn't feel right and Oishi was getting a sense of urgency in the pit of his stomach. He thought he heard some creaks on the floor outside in the hall but chose to ignore them. Then something happened that made him jump. The front door shut. He instantly became worried. What is something had happened to Eiji? Who was leaving his house? And why at this time of night? He rushed out of his room and into the bathroom. What he saw or rather didn't see made him gasp. Eiji wasn't there. Oishi started to panic about where Eiji could have gone when he remembered the front door. 'No,' Oishi thought as he ran down the stairs, 'Why the hell would he try to leave?' Oishi ran down the stairs and rushed to the front door. He threw it open and he saw starting to walk away his boyfriend.

"EIji, what the hell are you doing? Where are you going you need to be in bed," Oishi whisper-snapped so he didn't wake the neighbors. Eiji turned to face him.

"You guys can't afford me so I'm taking myself out of the equation. Please understand," EIji said turning away and starting to walk again.

He was stopped by a tug on his sleeve. "What are you talking about? We have money so I am sure it was a misunderstanding. Let's go back inside and sort it out," Oishi bargained.

"No I heard your mother loud…." Eiji was cut off by a sharp pain going up his neck. He grabbed at his head and thought he heard someone calling his name. He then saw the world fade before him and everything turned to black.

"Eiji? EIJI!" Oishi yelled. He caught Eiji before he hit the ground. He scooped the redhead up bridal style and kicked open the door as he rushed into the house. "MOM,DAD, HELP ME!" he yelled sure that he would wake the whole house. Sure enough both his parents came running down the stairs followed by his little sister.

"Shūichirō?! What happened?" his mother asked rushing over to her son with her husband in tow. Then her eyes landed on EIji in her sons arms. He was limp and unresponsive. She rushed over to the boy and shook him gently. "Eiji? Eiji I need you to wake up. Eiji? Eiji! Arata call an ambulance."

A/N: So what will happen?


End file.
